EBRD issues draft procedures on disclosure requests and appeals process
Comments due December 6, 2006.
13 November 2006
Last week the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) released a draft of "Implementing Procedural Provisions for Information Requests and Appeals." The draft is available on the bank’s website, and will be open for public comment for 30 days.
On November 6, the EBRD Secretary General issued a draft of "Implementing Procedural Provisions for Information Requests and Appeals," a component of its revised Public Information Policy (approved on May 16, 2006). These procedures outline the process for making a request for information to the EBRD and, notably, introduce a new procedure for filing an appeal to the Secretary General should a request not be “satisfied.” This move towards appeals processes for information requests is a growing trend at the Multilateral Development Banks. In the past two years, internal appeals mechanisms have been established at the Asian Development Bank and International Finance Corporation. While these processes fall short of satisfying truly independent oversight of transparency at these institutions, they are a first steps towards more accountability for disclosure practices.
The EBRD draft information request and appeals procedures are available on the bank’s website, and will be open for public comment for 30 days. External comments should be submitted to the Bank by email, at , no later than December 6, 2006. Following the closure of the open comment period, this document will be sent to the EBRD Board for document approval.
Background: On May 16, 2006 the EBRD Board of Directors issued a revised Public Information Policy (PIP). The EBRD has professed that the PIP embodies the Bank’s commitment to enhance the transparency of its activities and promote good governance. In Section 6 of the PIP, the EBRD committed itself to developing a detailed procedural guide to processing requests for undisclosed information documents. The newly released draft “Implementing Procedural Provisions for Information Requests and Appeals” is in direct response to that commitment.
For more information, please see BIC’s transparency page on the EBRD.
Additional Resources
PIP Draft Implementing Procedural Provisions for Information Requests and Appeals 06 Nov 2006 (pdf, 21 KB)